


Bright Raspberry Moon #2

by voleuse



Category: Torchwood
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-10-29
Updated: 2008-10-29
Packaged: 2017-10-04 02:02:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/voleuse/pseuds/voleuse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><em>I have loved others--ancient-eyed boys reading on benches, crossing guards in white gloves, businessmen sleeping on trains</em>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bright Raspberry Moon #2

**Author's Note:**

> Set after _Doctor Who_ 4.13. Title and summary adapted from Marisa de los Santos's _Because I Love You_.

The hatch cycled open, and beyond it, Gwen and Ianto played catch with a Dalek's arm.

Jack blinked, then coughed to cover a sudden and belated rush of terror. "Looks like things got exciting around here, too."

Ianto twisted, struck Jack with a grin. "You might say that, yes."

"If you'll make some tea, Jack," Gwen interjected, "we'll tell you all about it."

"Sure." Jack tilted his head. "I always enjoy a good debriefing."

As one, Gwen and Ianto walked off to the conference room, completely ignoring what Jack thought had been a perfectly respectable joke.

*

 

After Canary Wharf, Torchwood resources had become harder to access, and the system itself, labyrinthine. (Tosh knew how to do it. Ianto could, too, but he never did it with Tosh's sense of triumph.) Jack decided not to share the Dalek, in any case. When he needed something to do, aside from stowing Dalek bits in storage, he booted up a computer and stared at a directory he only kind of understood.

Ianto's tread was light behind him, but Jack didn't twist at his approach. "Did you need help finding something?"

"Not really." Jack nudged something on the keyboard, and the screen blinked. "Just doing a little browsing."

Warmth snuck into Jack's space. "Are you worried about the Doctor?" Ianto's voice was carefully casual.

"Ianto," Jack sighed. "I'm more worried about the bullets you and Gwen left embedded in the walls." He glanced sideways; the pattern was soothing, in a way.

"Self-defense," Ianto replied.

"Right," Jack replied, and maybe he sounded more petulant than he intended.

Ianto stood still, in that way he had, so Jack clicked on more buttons. A surveillance screen popped up in the corner. All the holding cells were empty, save the one.

Ianto reached over, closed the window and collapsed the directory. "I heard UNIT has a working teleportation device now."

Jack looked at him, finally. "And how did you hear that?"

Ianto shrugged. "I have ways."

Jack laughed, looked down. Ianto's fingers brushed his arm. "I'm intrigued, Ianto Jones."

Ianto raised his eyebrows, all innocence, and smiled.

*

 

Jack sat in the medical bay for forty-five minutes before Gwen found him. He twirling a pair of forceps in his hand, and when Gwen took the final step off the stairs, he wanted to make a joke, but decided against it.

"It's quiet," she observed, looking up at the walls.

Jack nodded. "Kind of empty."

She reached out, tugged the forceps from him. "Do you think we could use more people?"

"Maybe." He pointed at her, smiled. "Unless you learned how to do an autopsy while I was gone."

"Sorry." She poked him, twice.

"Too bad," he said.

"Yeah." She waited and he let her, for a minute.

"Okay," he conceded. "I'll make a couple of calls."

"Good idea," Gwen replied.

Jack grinned. "I've got tons of them."

She held up her hand, and tossed the forceps back into the tray.

They clattered.


End file.
